1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, such as a copying machine, a printer, and a scanner, which performs image processing to a sheet in an image processing unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 12 is a principal sectional view of a conventional disk-top type of small copying machine, and FIG. 13 shows an outer appearance of the copying machine.
In FIG. 12, reference numeral 270 designate a main body of an image forming unit, reference numeral 554 designates an image reading unit, reference numeral 551 designates an automatic document feeder (ADF), reference numeral 552 designates a document loading tray, and reference numeral 553 designates a document load glass. In the main body of the image forming unit, it is necessary to change Face Down (FD) ejection in order to response digitalization and continuous ejection page alignment, so that a sheet reverse mechanism is provided near an ejection unit.
In FIG. 12, in order to reverse the sheet which has passed through a fixing device, the sheet reverse mechanism includes an FD/FU switching flapper 501, a pair of reverse feed rollers 502a and 502b, reverse feed paths 504a and 504b, an AU feed path 505, a pair of ejection rollers 503a and 503b, a reverse flapper 506, and an ejection tray 275. The FD/FU flapper 501 properly changes Face Up (FU) and Face Down (FD).
In the above-described configuration, when the document loaded on the document loading tray 552 or the document load glass 553 of the ADF 551 is copied, the copied document is ejected in a face up manner from the pair of ejection rollers 503a and 503b to a loading tray 505 provided on a side face of the main body 270. In the conventional copying machine, a copying state can be instantly recognized and a height H1 of the document load table of the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 13 can be lowered, because the ejection unit is provided on not an upper portion but the side face.
In disposing of a paper jam generated in the reverse feed path 504b, the reverse feed path 504b is opened by integrating the paper ejection tray 505, a sidewall 207a of the main body of the image forming apparatus, and a feed guide 502c forming the reverse feed path 504b to be rotated about a rotation shaft 555 toward a direction of an arrow J. For example, a configuration in which the paper ejection tray and the feed guide forming the feed path are integrated and rotated to open the feed path is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 06-016279.
The configuration in which the paper ejection tray is rotated about an axis in a vertical direction and a guide forming the feed path of the sheet is moved in conjunction with the rotation of the paper ejection tray is disclosed in JP-A No. 11-143156. The configuration in which a sorter is slidably moved is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open (JP-U) No. 58-152642.
Sometimes a post-processing device for performing post-processing such as sorting and stapling to the ejected sheets is attached to a main body of an image forming apparatus instead of the paper ejection tray which receives the sheet ejected from the main body of the image forming apparatus. It is desirable that the paper ejection tray and the post-processing device are selectively attached to the main body of the apparatus such that the apparatus in which the loading tray is attached can be provided for a user for whom the post-processing is not required and such that the apparatus in which the post-processing device is attached can be provided for the user for whom the post-processing is required. In JP-A No. 61-119562, it is described that a mode in which the paper ejection tray is attached to the main body of the apparatus is equal to the mode in which the post-processing device is attached to the main body of the apparatus.
In the prior art shown in FIG. 13 (JP-A No. 06-016279), when the feed path guide 504c and the paper ejection tray 505 are integrally rotated in order to perform the jam disposal generated in the reverse feed path 504b, there is a fear that the sheet loaded on the paper ejection tray 505 falls down from an end portion 505a side of the paper ejection tray 505. When a capacity of the paper ejection tray is largely increased, because the user is required to operate the paper ejection tray having a heavy weight in which the many sheets are loaded in order to perform the jam disposal, operability becomes worse.
In the configuration disclosed in JP-A No. 11-143156, in which the paper ejection tray is rotated about the rotation axis extending in the vertical direction and the feed guide forming the feed path of the sheet is moved in conjunction with the rotation of the paper ejection tray, the rotation axis of the paper ejection tray is provided on one end side in the vertical direction with respect to the ejection direction of the sheet. It is necessary to rotate the paper ejection tray to about 90° in order to sufficiently open the feed path, so that a space for the rotation of the paper ejection tray is largely required in the side direction of the image forming apparatus. Therefore, a floor space required for the image forming apparatus is large.
The configuration in which the sorter is slidably moved is disclosed in JP-U No. 58-152642. However, after the user slides the sorter, the user is required to perform the operation for opening the feed path as the further additional operation, so that the operability is worse.
Further, the configuration in which the paper ejection tray and the post-processing device are selectively attached to the main body of the apparatus is not disclosed in any above-described reference which describes the prior art.
On the other hand, in the configuration described in JP-A No. 61-119562, the paper ejection tray and the post-processing device are selectively attached to the main body of the apparatus. However, in this publication, there is no disclosure concerning the configuration which disposes of the jam generated in the feed path led to the sheet ejection unit of the main body of the apparatus.